Must Read!!! Acceleration Explained

[Unique580hp]

This was contributed Alex Borla through Eric.

Enjoy! It is truely amazing to think about these details.

One Top Fuel dragster 500 cubic inch Hemi engine makes more
Horsepower than the first 4 rows at the Daytona 500.

Under full throttle, a dragster engine consumes 1-1/2 gallons of
nitromethane per second; a fully loaded 747 consumes jet fuel at the
same rate with 25% less energy being produced.

A stock Dodge Hemi V8 engine cannot produce enough power to drive
The dragster supercharger.

With 3000 CFM of air being rammed in by the supercharger on overdrive, the fuel mixture is compressed into a near-solid form before ignition.

Cylinders run on the verge of hydraulic lock at full throttle.

At the stoichiometric (stoichiometry: methodology and technology by
Which quantities of reactants and products in chemical reactions are
determined) 17:1 air/fuel mixture for nitromethane the flame front temperature measures 7050 degrees F.

Nitromethane burns yellow. The spectacular white flame seen above
The stacks at night is raw burning hydrogen, dissociated from atmospheric water vapor by the searing exhaust gases.

Dual magnetos supply 44 amps to each spark plug. This is the output
of an arc welder in each cylinder.

Spark plug electrodes are totally consumed during a pass. After Â1/2
way, the engine is dieseling from compression plus the glow of exhaust
valves at 1400 degrees F. The engine can only be shut down by cutting the fuel flow.

If spark momentarily fails early in the run, unburned nitro builds
up in the affected cylinders and then explodes with sufficient force to blow cylinder heads off the block in pieces or split the block in half.

In order to exceed 300 mph in 4.5 seconds dragsters must accelerate
An average of over 4G's. In order to reach 200 mph well before half-track, the launch acceleration approaches 8G's.

Dragsters reach over 300 miles per hour before you have completed
Reading this sentence.

Top Fuel Engines turn approximately 540 revolutions from light to
light! *Including the burnout the engine must only survive 900 revolutions under load.

The redline is actually quite high at 9500rpm.

The Bottom Line; Assuming all the equipment is paid off, the crew
Worked for free, and for once NOTHING BLOWS UP, each run costs an estimated $1,000.00 per second.

The current Top Fuel dragster elapsed time record is 4.441 seconds
for the quarter mile (10/05/03, Tony Schumacher). The top speed record is Kalitta).

Putting all of this into perspective: You are driving the average
$140,000 Lingenfelter "twin-turbo" powered Corvette Z06. Over a mile up the road, a Top Fuel dragster is staged and ready to launch down a quarter mile strip as you pass. You have the advantage of a flying start. You run the 'Vette hard up through the gears and blast across the starting line and past the dragster at an honest 200 mph. The 'tree' goes green for both of you at that moment. The dragster launches and starts after you. You keep your foot down hard, but you hear an incredibly brutal whine that sears your eardrums and within 3 seconds the dragster catches and passes you. He beats you to the finish line, a quarter mile away from where you just passed him.

Think about it, from a standing start, the dragster had spotted you 200 mph And not only caught, but nearly blasted you off the road when he passed You within a mere 1320 foot long race course.

That folks, is acceleration

[LwCwb]

I now know more about Top Fuel dragsters than I did before I read this thread. I only saw 1 top fuel drag race, but I will never forget the sound or the feeling of that much horsepower shaking the ground that I stood on (I was right at the starting line) Good Thread

[David Kirkham]

I was talking to Walt Austin the other day, (Walt Austin Racing--Pat Austin--was one of the first to go over 300 mph in the 1/4 mile.)

He told me EACH RUN COST ON AVERAGE $10,000.

So there is one more figure to add to your list.

$10,000/5 seconds average=

only a measly

$120,000/hour.

Not a bad rate! (Even for a lawyer!)

David

[speedar]

Nup $120,000 per minute......$7.2mil per hour!

[chuckmynatt]

Awesome collection of facts. I'm printing this to show a few people. Thanks!

Chuck

[klayfish]

If you've ever gone to an NHRA event, it is just a jaw dropping experience. You get to walk into the pits and in some spots, you can literally stand within a foot or two of the crew as they rebuild the motor. You're about 8' or less from the car itself. When they fire the motor, if you're standing close, you and everything around you shakes. You're eyes water so you can't see. It is so much fun!! You also have to watch them take off from the starting line. Watching on TV doesn't do it justice. Then go walk down to the finish line and watch them fly by.
My wife and I are going to Maple Grove in a few weeks to check it out. Makes the Pro-Stock cars look slow. And those cars could blow the doors off a Cobra, even with a 2 or 3 second head start.

Steve

[LwCwb]

I went to the nationals last lear, and I am going this year also, the TV can't replicate the sound or the feel the cars make when they go off the line. Are you taking the Cobra Steve?

[klayfish]

Mike,
I doubt it. Not too many good places to leave the car there. I don't mind leaving it somewhere, but not sure that is the best place to leave it. We'll see. If not, I may bring my Mustang if the weather is good.

Steve

[Kputz]

Yes, but how do they corner???

[Unique580hp]

Can I still bump this old thread to the top....it is awesome

[Rick Parker]

I realize this is an old thread but here is some current day money info:

In National Dragster, the recently retired Don Prudhome stated that it currently costs $10,000,000 per year to campaign a single Top Fuel car at a national level. Multiply that by the number of cars on a team and you can quickly see the financial commitment necessary for these teams to be on the road. How many sponsers are out there that can do THAT!

[vector1]

Originally Posted by Rick Parker

I realize this is an old thread but here is some current day money info:

In National Dragster, the recently retired Don Prudhome stated that it currently costs $10,000,000 per year to campaign a single Top Fuel car at a national level. Multiply that by the number of cars on a team and you can quickly see the financial commitment necessary for these teams to be on the road. How many sponsers are out there that can do THAT!

i like to call it socialism